Crestline Soaring Society

Got a lift up the hill from Kim and launched at 3:30. Suffered in trashy thermals for 45 minutes over Marshall, especially close to the upwind slope where I expected to find ridge lift. Very nasty. It was better up between 4500 and 4800 and toward the radio tower but still unpleasant. Finally got fed up and flew to Regionals. Latched on to a big wide lazy thermal that took me from below Cloud to 5600 and more than half way across the valley to Crestline so I zipped over there. Billboard was happening. Big well defined thermals lifting off like clockwork, not rowdy and often 800-1200 fpm that was easy to stay in. Got to 6200 and headed for Pine but a lot of sink when I got close so I turned and flew half way to the freeway, then back to Regionals. It was now a little after 5:00 and Regionals to Marshall was embarrassingly buoyant and mellow. Just point the glider and listen to the vario sing like a nightingale. When I landed I heard many smiling pilots commenting about “lift everywhere.”

Mike Z